Gerbera plant named ‘Garsylvana’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct cultivar of  Gerbera  plant named ‘Garsylvana’, characterized by its compact, upright and uniformly mounding plant habit; freely flowering habit; white-colored ray florets; upright and strong scapes; and good garden performance.

Botanical designation: Gerbera hybrida.

Cultivar denomination: ‘GARSYLVANA’.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Gerbera plant, botanically known as Gerbera hybrida and hereinafter referred to by the name ‘Garsylvana’.

The new Gerbera plant is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in De Kwakel, The Netherlands. The objective of the breeding program is to create new compact container Gerbera plants with numerous inflorescences, good garden performance, frost tolerance and attractive inflorescence coloration.

The new Gerbera plant originated from a cross-pollination in March, 2006 in De Kwakel, The Netherlands of a proprietary selection of Gerbera hybrida identified as code number 068102, not patented, as the female, or seed, parent with a proprietary selection of Gerbera hybrida identified as code number PA 203, not patented, as the male, or pollen, parent. The new Gerbera plant was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a single flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross-pollination in a controlled greenhouse environment in De Kwakel, The Netherlands during the spring of 2007.

Asexual reproduction of the new Gerbera plant by tissue culture in a controlled environment in De Kwakel, The Netherlands since the spring of 2007 has shown that the unique features of this new Gerbera plant are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Plants of the new Gerbera have not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in cultural practices and environment such as temperature and light intensity, without, however, any variance in genotype.

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of ‘Garsylvana’ . These characteristics in combination distinguish ‘Garsylvana’ as a new and distinct cultivar of Gerbera plant:

-   -   1. Compact, upright and uniformly mounding plant habit.     -   2. Freely flowering habit.     -   3. White-colored ray florets.     -   4. Upright and strong scapes.     -   5. Good garden performance.

Plants of the new Gerbera differ from plants of the female parent selection in the following characteristics:

-   -   1. Plants of the new Gerbera are more compact than plants of the         female parent selection.     -   2. Plants of the new Gerbera have smaller inflorescences than         plants of the female parent selection.     -   3. Plants of the new Gerbera and the female parent selection         differ in ray floret color as plants of the female parent         selection have light yellow-colored ray florets.

Plants of the new Gerbera differ from plants of the male parent selection in the following characteristics:

-   -   1. Plants of the new Gerbera are more compact than plants of the         male parent selection.     -   2. Plants of the new Gerbera have broader leaves than plants of         the male parent selection.     -   3. Inflorescences of plants of the new Gerbera have fewer ray         florets than inflorescences of plants of the male parent         selection.

Plants of the new Gerbera can be compared to plants of the Gerbera hybrida ‘Garnikki’, disclosed in a U.S. Plant patent application Ser. No. 12/802,564. Plants of the new Gerbera differ from plants of ‘Garnikki’ in the following characteristics:

-   -   1. Leaves of plants of the new Gerbera are duller than and not         as glossy as leaves of plants of ‘Garnikki’.     -   2. Ray florets of plants of the new Gerbera are narrowly         elliptic in shape with emarginate to acute apices whereas ray         florets of plants of ‘Garnikki’ are narrowly obovate in shape         with obtuse apices.     -   3. Plants of the new Gerbera and ‘Garnikki’ differ slightly in         ray floret color.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PHOTOGRAPH

The accompanying photograph illustrates the overall appearance of the new Gerbera plant. The photograph shows the colors as true as it is reasonably possible to obtain in colored reproductions of this type. Colors in the photograph may differ slightly from the color values cited in the detailed botanical description which accurately describe the colors of the new Gerbera plant. The photograph comprises a side perspective view of a typical flowering plant of ‘Garsylvana’ grown in a container.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The aforementioned photograph and following observations and measurements describe plants grown during the winter in 19-cm containers in a glass-covered greenhouse in De Kwakel, The Netherlands and under cultural practices and environmental conditions which approximate those generally used in commercial container Gerbera production. During the production of the plants, day temperatures ranged from 16° C. to 24° C. and night temperatures ranged from 16° C. to 20° C. Rooted young tissue-cultured plants were four months old when the photograph was taken and eight months old when the description was taken. In the following description, color references are made to The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart, Fifth Edition, 2007, except where general terms of ordinary dictionary significance are used.

-   Botanical classification: Gerbera hybrida ‘Garsylvana’. -   Parentage:     -   -   Female, or seed, parent.—Proprietary selection of Gerbera             hybrida identified as code number 068102, not patented.         -   Male, or pollen, parent.—Proprietary selection of Gerbera             hybrida identified as code number PA 203, not patented. -   Propagation:     -   -   Type.—By tissue culture.         -   Time to initiate roots.—About 2.5 to three weeks at             temperatures of 20° C.         -   Time to produce a rooted young plant.—About five to six             weeks at temperatures of 20° C. to 26° C.         -   Root description.—Fibrous; white in color. -   Plant description:     -   -   Appearance.—Herbaceous perennial that are typically grown as             container or garden plants; compact, upright and uniformly             mounding plant habit, roughly globular in shape; leaves             arranged in basal rosettes and outwardly arching; dense and             bushy habit; inflorescences held above the foliar plane on             erect and strong basal scapes; moderately vigorous growth             habit.         -   Plant height, soil level to top of foliar plane.—About 23             cm.         -   Plant height, soil level to top of inflorescences.—About             37.5 cm.         -   Plant width.—About 41 cm. -   Foliage description:     -   -   Arrangement.—Alternate, simple.         -   Length.—About 16 cm.         -   Width.—About 6.5 cm.         -   Shape.—Oblong.         -   Apex.—Acute.         -   Base.—Truncate.         -   Margin.—Irregularly sinuate; sinuses divergent; undulate.         -   Texture, upper surface.—Sparsely pubescent.         -   Texture, lower surface.—Moderately pubescent.         -   Venation pattern.—Pinnate.         -   Color.—Developing leaves, upper surface: Close to 147A.             Developing leaves, lower surface: Close to 147B. Fully             expanded leaves, upper surface: Close to 137A; venation,             close to 144A. Fully expanded leaves, lower surface: Close             to 137B; venation, close to 144B.         -   Petioles.—Length: About 8.5 cm. Diameter: About 3 mm.             Texture, upper and lower surfaces: Moderately pubescent.             Color, upper surface: Close to 144A. Color, lower surface:             Close to 144B. -   Inflorescence description:     -   -   Appearance.—Semi-double type inflorescence form with             narrowly elliptic-shaped ray florets; solitary             inflorescences borne on upright and strong scapes above the             foliar plane; ray and disc florets arranged acropetally on a             capitulum.         -   Fragrance.—None detected.         -   Flowering season.—Plants begin flowering about three months             after planting and flower from April to November in outdoor             gardens in The Netherlands; plants flower year-round under             greenhouse conditions.         -   Inflorescence longevity.—Inflorescences last about two to             four weeks on the plant; inflorescences not persistent.         -   Quantity of inflorescences.—Freely flowering habit with             about 18 open and developing inflorescences per plant at one             time.         -   Inflorescence bud.—Height: About 1.9 cm. Diameter: About             1.5 cm. Shape: Ovate. Color: Close to 138B and 138C; towards             the base, close to 138A; towards the apex, between 145D and             150D.         -   Inflorescence size.—Diameter: About 7.3 cm. Depth (height):             About 3.5 cm. Diameter of disc: About 2.2 cm. Receptacle             height: About 3 mm. Receptacle diameter: About 4 mm.             Receptacle color: Close to 157B to 157C.         -   Ray florets.—Orientation: About 70° from vertical. Length:             About 3.4 cm. Width: About 8 mm. Shape: Narrowly elliptic.             Apex: Emarginate to acute. Base: Cuneate. Margin: Entire.             Texture, upper and lower surfaces: Smooth, glabrous;             slightly velvety; longitudinally ridged. Number per             inflorescence: About 36 arranged in about two whorls. Color:             When opening and fully opened, upper surface: Close to 155D.             When opening and fully opened, lower surface: Close to 155D.         -   Disc florets.—Arrangement: Massed at center of receptacle.             Shape: Tubular, fused. Apex: Acute. Base: Fused. Margin:             Entire. Length: About 1.6 cm. Width: About 3 mm. Texture,             upper and lower surfaces: Smooth, glabrous. Number of disc             florets per inflorescence: About 180. Color, prior to             opening: Apex: Close to 11B; at the apex, close to 179B and             180C. Mid-section: Close to 11B. Base: Close to 151C to 151D             and 10A to 10B. Color, when opening: Apex: Close to 4D.             Mid-section: Close to 4D and 155A. Base: Close to 155A and             157D. Color, fully opened: Apex and mid-section: Close to             155A. Base: Close to 155A and 157D.         -   Pappus.—Quantity of hairs per floret: About 50. Length:             About 6 mm. Diameter: Less than 1 mm. Texture: Soft. Color:             Close to 157D.         -   Phyllaries.—Number of phyllaries per inflorescence: About 60             arranged in about two whorls. Length: About 1.3 cm. Width:             About 2 mm. Shape: Lanceolate. Apex: Narrowly acute. Base:             Cuneate. Margin: Entire. Texture, upper surface: Smooth,             glabrous. Texture, lower surface: Densely tomentose. Color,             upper surface: Between 143B and 144A. Color, lower surface:             Close to 138B; towards the base, close to 137C.         -   Scapes.—Length: About 35.6 cm. Diameter: About 4 mm;             distally, about 3 mm. Angle: About 10° from vertical.             Strength: Strong. Texture: Densely tomentose. Color: Close             to 144B; distally, close to 143A to 143B; proximally, close             to 152D.         -   Reproductive organs.—Androecium, present on disc florets             only: Quantity per floret: Two. Filament length: About 1 cm.             Filament color: Close to 155A. Anther shape: Lanceolate.             Anther length: About 0.5 mm. Anther color: Close to 155A.             Pollen amount: Scarce. Pollen color: Close to 8B. Gynoecium,             present on ray and disc florets: Quantity per floret: One.             Pistil length: About 1 cm. Stigma shape: Cleft. Stigma             color: Close to 200A. Style length: About 9.5 mm. Style             color: Close to NN155C. Ovary color: Close to 157A.         -   Seed/fruit.—Seed and fruit production has not been observed. -   Disease/pest resistance: Resistance to pathogens and pests common to     Gerberas has not been observed on plants of the new Gerbera grown     under commercial production conditions. -   Garden performance: Plants of the new Gerbera have been observed to     have good garden performance and to tolerate wind, rain and     temperatures from about −5° C. to about 35° C. 

1. A new and distinct Gerbera plant named ‘Garsylvana’ as illustrated and described. 